Getting a job at a KOA or RV Resort

Playa Del Rio RV Resort & Yacht Club

 There are many places on the internet that list jobs...but avoid the "farms" where old listings are posted just so you'll fall into "fields" of ads and offers.  I like this list of jobs because it has the date it was posted.  We are currently testing some of the ads to see if there's still a job attached to them...i.e., Playa Del Rio on the Gulf Coast. 

Another add we're responding to:  "Wow" will be the first thing you'll say after one look at this amazing, amenities-packed KOA in the heart of Central Florida. Splash in one of the region's largest pools after a game of sand volleyball. Pull your rig into an RV site complete with digital cable TV and a brick fireplace on the patio.  Work out in the exercise room.... then relax in the gentle breezes and shade of oaks and palms.  Jump on KOA's Shuttle to Disney, Universal, SeaWorld or Wet 'N' Wild and enjoy it all.   [OK!  We were sold...and they were advertising online for help.  We were gung-ho to apply because Craig & Tanya live close by and the LDS Church is "just across the street".] 

The first thing to do is call to see if the job is still available.  It turned out the ad we read online was not fresh.  But we sent our application in anyway, in case someone had to bail and an opening came up.  The owners sent us an email encouraging us to keep them in mind for next season.  That's just it.  The jobs fill up fast, before the season starts.  So the second thing to do is your research.  Make sure you are applying for a job that you will enjoy...for the entire commitment.  Go online and search the name of the resort or KOA with the key words "worked", "job", or something like that because people love to blog about their camp hosting jobs....and you'll usually get very frank opinions about how it was.

The reason you need to narrow down your options to the area you'd most like to live in and the work you'd most like to do, is there's an overwhelming number of camping locations. 

The third thing to do is to put together an informal resume that pinpoints the skills and experience you have that match the job.  You'll need a current picture of yourself and your rig.  It's best to email your application, and then follow up with a hard copy in the mail (if you are really interested in the position.) Then the final thing to do is an evaluation:  Focus on what you want and do your homework so you don't get stuck in a bad situation.

For instance... I found a compelling RV Adventure site, called Traveling on the Outskirts with the true stories of a young couple dedicated to living on the road.   Last year they were desperate (bad condition) for a workamping position and watched the postings religiously on workamping.com .  One came up at Sun N Fun RV Resort in Sarasota, Florida. This is a huge place with 1,515 sites and activities galore.  Our young adventurers called, sent a flaming resume with superior references, and then aced the phone interview to land the job.  The only problem was they didn't get the details on how they were to be paid and how much their spot would cost them...or even what the spot was like.  It turned out to be $450 a month for a little strip with no privacy whatsoever and a wage $3 less than anyone else was getting and no possibility of making a living...as they were working for tips outside in Florida's coldest winter anyone could remember.  You can read their almost tragic story at: The Real Deal   (A Reality check for campworkers.)

Want to be paid Cash Money?

There ARE many, many camp hosting positions that are paid (in real money).  One of the must varied lists of camp host jobs is found at http://www.simplyhired.com/ .  You can get your free spot without even being in a campground.  Another surprising site is jobsonline.net  with an easy search gadget.  You could be involved with anything from camp counseling to RV sales.

We worked with a couple who had happily been employed by Hoodoo Recreation.  She had been an area manager, and he drove a nice truck around with a spray system mounted on the back.  He could clean outhouses in a whole forest in one quick run.  Word is they all smelled great, too.  The secret?  Jasmine air fresheners and biological agents which contain not only potent enzymes, but also bacteria to break down the mess.  Anyway, click on the following site for an excellent description of both host and attendant jobs... It also explains why some jobs pay more than others:  Hoodoo Campground Host Job Descriptions

Recreation Resource Management has contracts to staff many campgrounds throughout ten states. They hire about 500 seasonal employees per year to work at one of 175 different campgrounds.  You can apply with Recreation Resource Management in one of three ways; you can apply online, download an application from the website and mail it in, or receive a paper application by mail to mail back in.   Click here to learn more or go to CampHost.org .  One caveat:  Some hosts have complained area managers with RRM have given them such a hard time that they felt they had to quit.  We do not know if some situations have really been that bad, do you?

I was told ALL of the state parks in Texas pay their camp hosts.  See How to apply for Texas State Park jobs  It turns out SOME of the jobs are paid.  The State of California has had paid camp hosts in the past but is going toward using more and more volunteers.  Check out their jobs at California Host Positions .    Don't forget Older and Bolder for paid jobs.

Legacy RV Resorts hires for their RV resorts in eight states. Visit http://www.legacyrvresorts.com/ to learn more about the job opportunities available.  Their online application is very easy to fill out.

Are you interested in employment at a Jellystone Park™? Check out the parks who are looking to fill  positions by visiting http://www.campjellystone.com/.  Please contact the individual parks directly for detailed information.  Bob and I paid to stay in a Jellystone campground here in Florida, and it's a great place if you miss having kids around.

If you go to http://koa.com/community/ there's a list of KOAs you can contact for employment.  As always, it's best to go in person to the campground you are interested in.  You want to see what the job is, and the employer will feel so much more comfortable meeting you in person before offering you a position.

Finding the PERFECT National Forest Position



This picture is of Shanty Pond Campground.  Our first job offer from the Forest Service!  We started with an online application, as we didn't know who to call directly.  It was so easy!  Just go to: Volunteer and search the available jobs.  Campground hosts receive free campground site use, so we checked the current fee per day to get an idea of the benefit we'd receive.  Shanty was a primitive campground and only $4/day.  Depending on which forest you would be working in, there may be a "daily subsistence and/or travel reimbursement"...as well as compensation for personal vehicle and cell phone use for Forest Service business.   This job's only benefit was the use of a Kawasaki Mule.  It had no hookup for water, just one water pump and one vault toilet for over 100 camp sites.  It also required a 6-month commitment...but we were excited.  We believed the postings about how hard it was to get any type of offer. 

We studied the Basic Requirements:

• Enjoy working positively with the public and being visible.  Convey the recreation facility rules as necessary.
• Provide own self-contained living unit.
• Agree to a background check as Hosts handle sensitive information, communicate with by radio and in some cases handle cash.  Provide a copy of your driving record and take a driving course.
• In good health and physical condition (repeated bending and lifting to clean restrooms and fire rings, litter pickup, filling potholes, and maybe even splitting firewood and pulling vegetation.)
• Able to operate equipment such as a leafblower, trimmer, mower, etc.

We shared pictures of Shanty, and our family complained 6 months was too long and the Ocala was too remote (no internet or cell service).  But there's only 15 campgrounds in all of Ocala National Forest.  What else could we possibly get? 
While searching on the internet for reviews about this campground, I found police reports of shootings and even a brutal murder of two environmentalists by gun shot.  It turned out this was mostly a hunters' camp and only had dirt roads.  I started nightmaring about drunken hunters laden with multiple guns.  Oh, no.

JOB APPLICATIONS - How? Why? Why not?

Why not apply?  Just as other hosts had told us, applications did not work for us (at first).  It was much better to call...and best to visit in person about openings.  We applied at Workamper.com over a year ago and never heard a whisper.   And it was a great application!  We did run into some of their employees in a rock shop just outside Bryce Canyon.  They said they loved being Workampers and said to join the mailing list online.  We did, and still nothing.   The same thing happened with our online ap to Recreation Resource Management at Host Jobs .  If you want to see the online ap click here.  But when Bob CALLED he was able to talk to the Area Manager in Florida and find out everything we wanted to know about working in the campgrounds they managed.  The problem was...they had no current openings.
Why apply?  We found applications (written just the right way) really DO work...if you make a friendly call first.  Take lots of notes, listening carefully to what the position requires, and then specifically, enthusiastically write on your ap how your qualifications match the requirements.  Leave out all of the details of your life and experiences that don't match the job so your comments will be concise and your message clear:  YOU are the best person for the job!
How?  The next posts will detail how we got each job offer...and were we ever surprised by the number of offers.  It's well advertised that we baby boomers are flooding the market with our efforts to get that wonderful spot for our rig in the out-of-doors.  And it's true...you almost have to "douse yourself in gasoline and set yourself on fire" to get the attention of those filling campground positions.  They are SWAMPED with applications.  If you ever want to hire me to apply for you, just let me know.  We've been told our applications garnered a job offer for every opening in Florida.  Funny.